Transcript from Mayor Dean’s speech:
Good morning Chestermere.
I want to start off by saying thank you to Official Administrator Doug Lagore and to Chief Administrative Officer Pat Vincent for your service to this community. To Official Administrator Doug Lagore – watching and listening to you give the speech you gave at the end of the last council meeting exemplified how much you have cared for this community and for the administration and staff. Your passion in that speech was inspiring and was a call to action for this newly elected council. Thank you for the challenge you have left for us to lead Chestermere well.
Now, it is with immense excitement for the future and a deep sense of gratitude that I accept the position of Mayor for the City of Chestermere. Thank you to the residents of Chestermere for bestowing upon me the great privilege and responsibility of representing you. As I have said several times over the past week, I am excited, blessed and humbled by the results of this election. It is no small thing to have someone say they support you and are voting for you and it is not lost on me the tremendous responsibility I have been tasked with. I commit to earning your trust everyday and working with you, council and administration to move Chestermere forward.
Thank you to all those candidates who put their name forward for both mayor and council. It takes great courage to put your name in the public spotlight, and I encourage you all to continue serving our community in various capacities. Your dedication is invaluable, and our city thrives when we all work together.
On behalf of council, I would like to say thank you to those who voted for us to represent you and, from speaking with this council, we are all committed to representing the best interests of all of Chestermere moving forward. Thank you to all of those who served and volunteered on our campaigns and thank you Chestermere for entrusting the 7 of us to lead Chestermere and represent you.
For Chestermere to have success moving forward, it is imperative that we now work as a team and leave our personal agendas at the door. As such, I want to take time this morning to talk about the team of people you have elected to serve for this term. I want to highlight some reasons why I am excited to work with each person.
Councilor Ritesh Narayan. While he got to sit on the sidelines and watch the happenings of this byelection, he has not sat on the sidelines during this past term. I want to say thank you to Councillor Narayan for his strength, courage, and for his support during the past couple of years. I look forward to him assisting our council from his experience having served multiple terms in office. His understanding of governance and his legal background is an asset to this team.
Councillor Janelle Sandboe. I appreciate your tenacity, your involvement in the community, and the diversity of experience you bring to this role. I appreciate how you continually refuse to be dragged into conversations that would highlight others in a negative light. I look forward to how council will benefit from your work in the community, your experience as a business owner, and from your governance experience with other organizations.
Councilor Rob Wawrzynowsk. The man is a walking roladex of leadership quotes. I have appreciated the opportunity to get to know him during this campaign. I appreciate his get stuff done mentality and his willingness to take initiative. I look forward to how Rob will push this council to get work done for this community and the experience he brings from the business sector.
Councillor Murray Grant. Your campaign slogan of from here, for here, is a true reflection of who you are. Murray is born and raised in Chestermere, clearly cares about this community and simply wants what is best for Chestermere. I appreciate the thoughtfulness he brings in asking questions and his ability to bring humor and a sense of fun to our team. I look forward to the perspective he will bring to this council from being a lifer in Chestermere.
Councilor Kiran Randhawa. Your involvement in the not-for-profit sector of this community and your service to the Punjabi community in particular has been and will continue to be a blessing to our community. I look forward to the perspective you will bring to council to help us further serve the needs of all populations in Chestermere.
Councillor Robert Schindler. I appreciate your kindness and your determined focus on living in a community where the diversity of all is celebrated and embraced. A great example of this is when an area of our community was defaced in an incredibly inappropriate manner, you stepped up to work on having the symbols removed. Council and the community will benefit from the kindness of your heart, your deep concern to ensure people are not hurt and from your tenacity to contend for all people.
To the staff and administration of City Hall. I would like to first of all acknowledge and apologize for the turmoil that you have experienced over the past couple of years. As mayor, I make the following commitments to our staff – you will be respected, listened to and valued. I will do everything in my power to ensure that the work environment of city hall is safe, respectful, welcoming and inclusive. You matter. Your voice matters. Your work matters. Your experience matters. As someone wrote on a stone outside city hall, everyday heroes work here.
To the residents of Chestermere, this council is committed to moving forward, to making decisions that will make a tangible difference in your day to day life and to earning your trust. We are committed to listening to you, connecting with you and representing you well. When we engage and collaborate, we build trust and foster a sense of belonging. This sense of community is what makes Chestermere a wonderful place to live.
Chestermere, as we move forward, I have a request for each of you: let’s work together to create a community where everyone feels safe, valued and included. Let’s debate ideas respectfully and turn the temperature down in our community. Let’s be kind to one another, ask good questions, seek to understand and then to be understood. Let’s move forward together and help establish a Chestermere we are all proud of.
I invite you to join us in this journey. Share your ideas, ask questions, and actively participate in making Chestermere a better place for all.
Thank you, Chestermere. Together, let’s build a brighter future.